Lamoreaux Landing, Atwater Vineyards, Red Newt, Lakewood & Hermann Wiemer

Boy have I been lucky visiting this gorgeous region. The weather has been absolutely perfect still. Today I traveled down the eastern side of Seneca Lake with my first stop at a consistent quality producer, Lamoreaux Landing. They were voted by Wine & Spirits top 100 winery of the world. They have many different styles of Rieslings and Chardonnays to try due to them having over a 100 acres and 20 different vineyards sites. You really can't go wrong with many of the wines here including their variety of Rieslings, as well as their Gewurztraminer and different selection of Cabernet Franc both stainless and oak aged. 

View from Atwater Estate Vineyards

Today I added another new winery to my list, Atwater Estate Vineyards, just south of Lamoreaux. Atwater began its establishment back in 2000, but had been producing wine for many years previously under different owners and winery names. They had some interesting blends here including a Riesling/Gewurztraminer blend that continuously changed in your mouth with typical characteristics of each of these grapes. They also had some interesting red blends including a Stone Bridge Red dominated by the Marechal Foch grape and including Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot and Blaufrankisch, being the Austrian name, but also known as Lemberger.  

View from Atwater Estate Vineyards

After an enjoyable lunch on the patio at my next stop, Red Newt Bistro, I stayed to taste their wines for my second time around. They have proved to be another reliable source for some well made wines including their semi-dry Riesling and their Gewurztraminer. Their specialty here are their single vineyard Rieslings. They had about 4-5 different kinds that come from all different vineyard sites. This winery is also one of the producers involved in the Tierce Riesling that I had mentioned when I discussed Anthony Road and Fox Run Vineyards on my first day here. You may be able to find Red Newt in a local town near you as they have many locations that you can find on their website. Let me know if you need any suggestions as I tried many of them and I can vouch that they were also very good in their own way depending on what you are looking for. 

Lakewood Vineyards

Next I revisited an oldie, that I don't remember that well, but it was a pleasant refresher, Lakewood Vineyards. They can be found in Watkins Glen heading up the western side of Seneca Lake. They had a couple different flights, both dry and sweet, with the sweet being very sweet including the Catawba, Delaware and Concord grapes, where I found the drier flight much more enjoyable, but everyone has their own opinions.

This winery opened its doors to the public in 1989, but had been producing and selling grapes since the 50's to Welchs Juice Company and Taylor Wine Company. The winery had previously served as an apple and peach orchard. I found the 2011 Valvin Muscat one of the most enjoyable wines here and this was their first year of production. It was just released at the end of April. It had a very floral bouquet with nice acidity to round it out on the palate.  

Lastly, we went to Hermann Wiemer. In my opinion I would put him right at the top of my list with Dr. Konstantin Frank. It's understandable knowing his history in the wine making business. His first planting in the Finger Lakes was in 1976. He had lived in Bernkastel Germany where both of his parents were involved in the wine industry. His mother's family had been making wine more than 300 years in the Mosel region of Germany, one of the more famous areas in Germany known for producing high quality Rieslings. While in Germany he attended a prestigious institute for viticultural research. 

This winery in 2010 was featured Wine Spectators 100 Wines in the World. Also, for the last few years, they have also been in Wine & Spirits Top 100 Estates. Their tasting room here is great as you get to sample these fantastic wines right in one of the rooms where the tanks are located. It definitely adds to the atmosphere. They have some of the highest quality Rieslings and Gewurztraminers in the area with also some nice red and white blends, Frost Cuvee and Field Cuvee. Hermann Wiemer retired in 2007 and the winery is now run by one of his apprentices, Fred Merwarth, that took over in 2007 along with co-owner Oskar Bynke. 

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